Yik Yaking

Yik Yak invaded my life.  Well, Yik Yak wants me to believe that it invaded my life. You see, I don't really think it has.  It just wants me to believe its integral to my existence.

But I guess it worked since I downloaded it this morning, after the one-two punch of a Daily Tar Heel story and a class discussion tipped me just far enough to curious to overwhelm my instinct not to be unduly annoyed.

It happened anyway.  I truly do not understand the appeal of this thing.  I admit, I found the signs advertising it around campus amusing (one outside of the dining hall: "What if soy milk is just regular milk introducing itself? ha ha ha).  But that is a carefully choreographed advertising campaign with content far better than is provided with the actual product.

You see, people are not actually that funny.  Growing up inundated with social media has taught me one thing (besides how to shorten my attention span to .3 seconds and to be an insufferable selfie-taking narcissist who types with numbers in place of letters): regular people don't have that  much to offer in the way of quality entertainment. 

 That brings me to Yik Yak.  It takes the worst element of all social media and glorifies it.  It only contains the drivel.  There is no utility.  The way people talked, I expected (foolishly) to find witty comments about the zeitgeist or brilliant quips at the heart of what is it to be in Chapel Hill at this very moment.

What I got were hundreds of complaints about the heat, eight a.m. classes, and freshmen.  These are the same complaints I read all on all three previously mentioned social media websites. Why do we need so many outlets to complain about things?  These are things people have been complaining about since the dawn of time.  But somehow, we never get tired of the same jokes.

I have adopted a smug attitude toward social media in this here post on my blog, with Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr opened up in different tabs. I'm not saying all social media is drivel because it's primarily filled with average joe's musings.  It's just that Yik Yak takes the worst parts of all social media sites and focuses entirely on that.

Facebook is full of crap I don't want to read. I think it's fair to say most everyone feels that way.  Nobody keeps their Facebook account active because they want to see how much Ashley <3's Josh or somebody else's Grandma's badly typed prayer request or six thousand pictures of people arranged in sorority girl squats.  They keep Facebook because the world assumes you have one: you are a social non-entity if you can't get Facebook event invites or group messages planning events. Facebook messages are a prime line of communication.  This is part of our lives now. There is utility and social capital in participating on Facebook.  I'll buy it.

Twitter lacks a conversational utility, but it has its purposes. Real journalists and organizations tweet, and it's helpful to have all that information all in one place.  It's a legitimate way to pass information on to others, especially when covering live events. There is something intriguing about watching the world erupt when Bryan Cranston kissed Julia Louis-Dryfus on the Emmys (and stole McConaghey or Jon Hamm's Emmy). I can see the utility of this.

Tumblr is perhaps hardest to justify, based on my standards of utility and no-drivel policies.  But Tumblr attracts a nerdier, more focused set.  You can follow blogs with very specific topics, so you only get content from people who don't annoy you.  It's not like Facebook, where every time you talk to a person for more than three minutes, you qualify to be Facebook friends.  There's a degree of anonymity. Plus, I once got a job at a literary magazine off Tumblr, so it does have a purpose.

I don't think I need Yik Yak in my life.  I know it's hot. I go outside. I know 8 a.m. is early. I have class then.  I know freshmen don't know what's up.  I was one once.  Thanks for being informative, Yik Yak.  Thanks., this whole myth that it's such a big trend and everyone is doing it seems wrong.  Not a single person in my close circle of friends and acquaintances--no roommates, no co-workers, no casual lunch companions--have appeared given Yik Yak hardly a thought.  If so many people on campus have it, where are they?  Am I just friends with the wrong people?
Or maybe I'm friends with the right people. People who have something more to say than "it's hot."